Morris Minor Owners Club

ive been after a cheap minor for a while now, but finances have always dictated otherwise. Anyway ive been offered a minor by a friend of a friend and ill be going to check it out soon so im after any sort of general advice in regards for things to look out for, odviously ive checked out buying guides and the like, but theres always nothing like peoples personal experiences.


anyway as for the car, well ive been told its a black 1963 2 door with red interior thats in regular use and apparently flew through last mot with no troubles.. the interior is ment to be in pretty good order however the outside has been hand painted in places (tbh that doesnt bother me in the slightest as im not after a minter)

now apparently hes after somewhere in the region of £450 which for a t&t'd minor in supposed fairly good order sounds a pretty good price to me. any thaughts gentlemen?

Hello

I am by no means as experienced and knowledgable as many on here who will no doubt offer valuable advice and guidance, but I did something similar to your senario.

I bought the '64 four-door in the pic below aff ebay without inspecting it first:oops: . I (I say I, but the old man did all the work) have already had to replace the clutch (£116). The off-side rear damper also decided to remove itself from the body which my father duly fixed; it was difficult to assess the state of the chassis and body due to it being coated in what is apparently waxoyl.

The first thing that I had to replace was the regulator (£25) which stopped working after the initial collecting run from Fife to Ayr.

I have also just purchased four seatbelts (£117) for it after reading and viewing a particularily thought provoking thread on this forum.

The car is brill to drive I love it, but for £450, your gonna have to expect some issues. If you know someone who has knowledge of mechanics and can weld, your laughing. If not prepare to learn or fork out some cash.

Hope this helps and good luck buddy

mechanical issues arent too much of a problem for me, and the other half's dad is more than handy with a welder should i really need it.

seatbelts are somethign im definatly gonna have to fit mind for a baby seat. but lik i say i dont really want a minter, i want somethign thats gonna want abit of work, something i wont be scared to use =] the most important bit for me is the t&t so i cna use it as i go along.


out of interest how big of a job is fitting seatbelts?

Cool, I was just meaning to highlight the kind of issues/costs I have had with a similar aged car of simliar price, T&T'd etc.

There are a number of threads on the seatbelts in the technical forum. There are some good pics etc. We haven't fitted them yet. Some of the models apparently have anchor points factory fitted, I can't see any on mine but as I mentioned before, the waxoyl stuff is like tar underneath.

The workshop manual has guidance as well I noticed when having a quick look today.

Another thing my dad replaced was the fuel line.
Once the belts are fitted I plan on using it daily.

cheers

Strengthened mounting points for belts were only added in the major redesign at September 1962, I believe. The seatbelt info in the workshop manual is not terrifically wonderful, I also believe, but don't ask me why I think this -- I'm not with my manuals and books (or, for that matter, my Moggie) at the moment.

Mounting brackets can be purchased from ESM (http://morrisminorspares.co.uk/shop/pro ... 83d292c273), along with the belts themselves. It's not a horrible job for the profit you get from having them, but it is a bit fiddly and may be best done by two people.

As has been mentioned many many times -- for the love of God, use three-point belts, and have them on all four seats if you intend to use every seat! It's up to you to get inertia-reel or static belts, but I highly suggest the reel type.

About price: my Moggie cost the equivalent of about £2500, and I've invested well over 100 hours of welding work alone, and probably another £3000 on top of the purchase price, and I'm not anywhere near done. Not all Minors will be like that, but be prepared.

For my tuppence worth - even though it seems a fair deal a Morris for £450 is going to need work. It may have passed an MOT but that doesn't always mean much and the seller may be moving it on because there is work looming for the next MOT. It sounds like you have your feet on the ground and don't mind getting stuck in but be sure you are not taking on more than you want too. Have a good poke around and jack it up, support the car with stands and check out the centre xmember and floors, sills, spring hangers and chassis legs. In the engine bay have a good look at the inner wings especially at the bottom where they join the tie plates and also the tie plates themselves and front xmember. Don't expect them to be rust free but at least you know what you are taking on and can price up any repair panels that might be required.

£450 with test is a good buy IMHO, go see it and poke the usual places of the underside with a screwdriver, (sills, rear spring mounts ect) take a fridge magnet with you, you would be amazed at the amount of filler used on some of these cars.
Just remember its for £450 and with that in mind when you go to see it look for reasons to walk away, if you find none then buy it.

Make sure that's a NEW MOT - not a 6 month old one........ INSIST on a new MOT.

all good advice. as i said im not expecting a car thats sorted and problem free, infact i quite like getting my hands dirty... though im far from a great mechanic, i just like ot get stuck in and learn along the way. aslong as its consistantly on the road so to speak then i dont mind what ever comes my way within reason. its not my first classic, however it would be my first with an mot! haha

im not gonna get to see it untill the end of the month, but as hes not activly selling it anymore that wont be a problem.

Sounds good to me, and with a years ticket, go for it!